Presents. This is how I think of the eggs my girls have begun to gift me with.
A week ago last Thursday, we got our first mini egg. Today, I received egg #14.
I didn't think to weigh the very first one. Trust me, though, it was eensy-weensy (scientific term):
Since then, we've gotten a variety of different eggs.
I have chosen not to include the rubber egg, that I found oozing in the bottom of the coop last week, in my overall egg tally:
With this exception, the rest of the eggs have been picture perfect. Some are round, others more oblong, some have a darker brown hue, some are speckled, others are a dusty-ish pinky brown (more scientific terms, stay with me here). All have been absolutely incredible to hold in my hand.
People are asking what I've done with them. Well....
Taking recommendations from some blogging friends, I blew out the insides of the first one. I just couldn't bear to crack it (note glass of wine - even poking a hole in the bottom was nerve-wracking):
Jim and I have eaten three of them:
Aidan and his buddy, Chris, had two for breakfast yesterday:
Teenage boys are so much fun:
But I've got to say, I was in no way prepared for this baby:
This is 2.1 oz of chicken JOY (that's 59.53 grams for you, Rian. BAM!):
The house was all aflutter. How in the WORLD did my wee pullets manage to lay this beast? It is even bigger than a grocery store AA large egg:
Let's recap.
First egg:
Mondo egg:
For comparison purposes:
Aren't chickens amazing?:
Even the 1924 egg grading scale was impressed:
What say you, egg experts, is there more than one yolk in here?:
I am so in love with my chickens:
Ouch!
ReplyDeleteI love the way you write. You make me laugh! Thanks
ReplyDeleteJen
Oh Danni, You are such an inspiration. "Our" chickens, down in California are now 6 weeks old and have just been introduced to their outdoor living space. My granddaughter has just started her own blog http://simplycountry-karahlv.blogspot.com. She's done a great job keeping us up to date with their baby chicks!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait for our eggs! Yours are absolutely gorgeous.
Wow! That's a big egg! Could be two yolks in there. I bet your Buff Orpington "SpongeBob" produced it. Do you know whose egg it is?
ReplyDeleteRed chickens often lay double yolkers. Do you have a red chicken, Danni??
ReplyDeleteHey Solomon - I think those were pretty much the first words out of my mouth when I saw it! :-)
ReplyDeleteHi jenny - you made me smile!
Hi california grammy - I took a look at your g'daughter's blog - it's so sweet! Very well done. I'll check back for more updates! :-)
Hi jen - Aren't I weird? I don't want to crack it open to find out!
I don't think it was Spongebob - I haven't seen her around the nest box even once (and you can bet I've been keeping a really close eye on it!).
Hi Tonya...Red chickens, huh? Why yes, I have two Rhode Island Reds and, if I had to guess, I would say that it was one of my reds who laid that mondo egg. One had been laboring (literally) for two days arranging shavings, rearranging shavings, changing nest boxes, panting, wiggling her tail constantly, she totally looked like she was in labor, but then...nothing. Until I found that egg, almost 2 days later.
OUCH!!!!!!
ReplyDeletePS. You're still the best Danni!!!
That is one huge egg. Just think how long it took you to blow out the insides of your first wee little egg....hmmm....this one may take you days! And at least a full bottle of wine!
ReplyDeleteI love my chickens too. I totally understand. Your son and his friend made me laugh. I have a 13 year old son who's just as silly. Great pictures and enjoy those eggs :)
ReplyDeleteDid the nesting boxes arrive just in time or what?! Beautiful, beautiful eggs from the world's most pampered and loved chickies. I'm so happy I could watch their growth and development. We had so much fun baby(chickie)sitting them for a week when you were gone!
ReplyDeleteBill really wants to know if the mondo egg was laid in the nesting box and exactly(!) in which one!
Anyway, congratulations! I share your joy.
Hey eve! I know! Poor girl. That had to hurt. :-)
ReplyDeleteFrugalmom...you're back...Yay! How was your trip? I'm not blowing this one out. No way. I'd probably pass out. ;-)
Hi Zitrone-mama, please tell Bill that it was most definitely laid in the nesting boxes that he built, the far left one, if I recall correctly. That seems to be the current favorite among the girls. I would've guessed the far right one would be the fave, but who really knows what a chicken is thinking when she's about to lay an egg? :-)
Hi outerbanksmom! Thanks. My boys (even the ones who don't officially belong to me) all crack me up. Maybe I'm easily entertained, but I find myself laughing a lot these days...they're just so darn cute! :-)
ReplyDeleteI totally love reading about your chickens. This is the first year we have had chickens. I am so totally ready for eggs! I can sit there and watch them forever. Stew, the rooster, is beginning to get friskie.... so maybe the time draweth near! Have a great day! Christina
ReplyDeleteSee? Didn't I tell you soon enough they'll be laying 'em so big you won't be able to close the lid on the egg carton?! :) Chickens are amazing, aren't they?
ReplyDeleteWhat beeeeeaaaauuuutiful eggs (happy sigh)! That big one, wow...well...shazam
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's eggs like those the chickens are gossipping about when they are all together having chicken chats...sort of like a group of women who tell their childbirthing labor stories to each other in full detail...? lol
Wow, you have me beat chicken sis. My eggs are just trickling in. Yesterday I got one egg that was flat on one side. But I did get a large blue/green one the day before. Just like Easter.
ReplyDeleteSo far only two of my girls are laying. I will lecture them today about your dinosaur egg and see what happens.
What's going on with the rooster situation?
Good lord. I'm glad I dropped out of this contest before that freak of nature popped out. Marble... marble... SOFTBALL!
ReplyDeleteI tell ya what, I hope we do bump into each other in the streets of Stumptown some day, and you can tell me how one moves from aligning stakeholder incentives for optimal synergy to stuffing donkey nuts back into their sacks and schlepping hay bales.
I'd take it in a heartbeat at this point. Unfortunately, I think it'd come with a side dish of divorce, and I already tried that once. Didn't really enjoy it all that much.
Hi Tocco - you will have eggs before you know it! How old are your girls now? Mine were 17 weeks when they started laying..
ReplyDeleteHi farm mom - yes, you totally warned me...but I just wasn't expecting it to happen so soon! :-)
Hey Robbyn - I can totally see the girls out there, chirping and chattering away to each other - it does seem like they're gossiping, especially when they all kind of stop for a minute and look at me, as I walk by. You don't think they're talking about me, do you?! LOL
Oh, goatgirl...your Ameraucana is laying!! Sparrow, my Ameraucana, doesn't seem to be even thinking about it yet. Funny about the flat-sided egg. Would love to be with you for your dinosaur-egg lecture. ha ha ha!! I'll update you on Roopert shortly.
Oh my, Urban Hayseed, I can always count on you for a colorful comment, can't I? Sometimes, I'm almost afraid to read them. But I probably shouldn't tell you this. :-)
It is hard to get that rather brutal donkey injury out of one's mind, isn't it? I'd like to apologize again for posting that picture. :-)
Regarding the major lifestyle change, all you can do is TRY IT...if it doesn't work out, move back. No second divorce necessary. :-)
If I had to narrow my blog reading down to one or two blogs, your would be there. Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm and love of all things living. You make my school life bearable.
ReplyDeleteOMG that's a HUGE egg!!! Way to go girls!!
ReplyDeleteHoly Kansas! That's a triple yolker for sure! I can't believe it came from such young hens. You'll be getting ostrich-sized eggs next year!
ReplyDeleteI'm in love with your chickens too. Especially since I don't have my own yet. I can't even imagine the thrill of getting your own eggs!
ReplyDeleteGood for you finally breaking open those pretty eggs for breakfast. I know how you feel, too. First it was kind of sad to break any of our little coop treasures, and second it was really odd eating eggs not bought from the grocery store, but instead eggs that came directly from our hens' rear ends. :D
ReplyDeleteMy guess is you got yourself a triple yolker there. I remember our first triple yolker, too. I kept it in the fridge for a week, waiting to see what was inside, sort of like the Surprise of Christmas morning. And what a surprise, too!
We were blessed with a large number of double and triple yolks, as you might remember, for a few months. And then our girls' systems got regulated and we rarely get any double yolk eggs now.
But they are just as yummy as can be. :)
Congrats.